On July 7, 1997, Daniel Troy was carelessly fooling around with a handgun at the home of Amy Roberts, near Fenton, when the 9 mm semiautomatic discharged and killed her. Troy, then 17, admitted he had acted recklessly. He also admitted he had stolen the gun from the home of another teen-ager, Amanda Mahler. In January 1998, Troy was sentenced to five years in prison for manslaughter. On Tuesday, a panel of the Missouri Court of Appeals absolved both Amanda Mahler and... (GunPolicy.org)

A candlelight vigil dedicated to victims, survivors and communities affected by gun trauma will be held tonight from 5:30 to 6:30 at the Johnson City traffic circle. "This is our first real event, and we want to put the word out that we are here," said Lisa Kerila, a coordinator for the local chapter of the Million Mom March movement. Patrice Daly, whose 13-year-old son Matt was killed with a gun at a friend's house in 1992, said the group wants to raise awareness... (GunPolicy.org)

JEFFERSON CITY, Missouri — Like the political family she helped raise, Jean Carnahan takes no victory at face value. So while she's pleased that she'll carry on for her husband, the late Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan, in the U.S. Senate, Jean Carnahan understands that she's also taking on some of his most passionate opponents, including those who are against abortion and gun restrictions. The Nov. 7 election returns made that clear, she said during a recent interview... (GunPolicy.org)

In the United States, universal firearms registration is demanded by groups such as Handgun Control, Inc., and the "Million" Mom March Foundation. They argue that registration would encourage greater responsibility among owners and also provide police with better methods of tracing lost or stolen firearms. Opponents argue that such a scheme would be unworkable and, at best, just create another costly bureaucracy. The recent introduction of firearm registration in Canada... (GunPolicy.org)

A voter-passed state initiative that requires background checks for anyone buying firearms at Oregon gun shows goes into effect Saturday. But critics object to the state keeping the records for five years. Gun buyers in the small town of Rickreall will be the first to test out Measure 5, according to KOIN 6 News. Notices about the new law will be posted on every table. Anyone who buys or sells a firearm at the show has to fill out a form which asks questions about... (GunPolicy.org)

Anyone caught carrying a handgun in their fanny pack will be arrested and prosecuted, state's attorneys from Illinois' three largest counties warned Wednesday. A Web site run by Concealed Carry Inc. has been urging people to carry their guns in their fanny packs because they believe appellate court cases in Illinois clear the way for that. They are mistaken, Cook County State's Attorney Dick Devine said. He was joined by DuPage County State's Attorney Joe Birkett and... (GunPolicy.org)

As New York teen-ager Stephen Fox tells the story, he was simply having a conversation with a friend. He looked over at the friend and saw him raise his arm with a "black object." The next thing Fox knew he was in his mother's arms, unable to move his arms or legs. What happened that day in 1994 was that Fox's friend, Alfred Adkins, accidentally shot him with a .25 caliber handgun. Fox survived the shooting, permanently disabled by the bullet that remains lodged in his... (GunPolicy.org)

NEW YORK — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Camden County, N.J., against the gun industry, concluding the county had no standing to sue, the National Shooting Sports Foundation said Thursday. The group said U.S. District Judge Jerome Simandle ruled Tuesday that Camden County could not show that the manufacturers' distribution of legal guns caused a public nuisance or caused the county to incur costs to prevent, prosecute and punish gun crimes. In his... (GunPolicy.org)

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas — A woman gunning for her estranged husband shot and killed her 5-year-old nephew instead as he sat in a car, police said. Amy Bankston, 24, pleaded innocent Wednesday to capital murder and was ordered held on $250,000 bail. Police Lt. Eric Higgins said Bankston approached her estranged husband's car at a traffic light Monday and fired into it, thinking he was in the vehicle. Instead, Bankston's sister-in-law and her family were. Bankston's... (GunPolicy.org)